


War Is Over - A Selection of Christmas Clips

by therumandcokediaries



Series: Frostiron and Spiderson [4]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Christmas, Family, Grief/Mourning, Parent Loki (Marvel), Parent Tony Stark, Pepper pops up in this as well, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, festive stuff, friends - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-18
Updated: 2018-12-18
Packaged: 2019-09-22 07:31:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17055758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/therumandcokediaries/pseuds/therumandcokediaries
Summary: A Selection of clips around the Christmas season, with Loki, Tony and Peter having their first Christmas together without MaySet after 'Freeze'.





	War Is Over - A Selection of Christmas Clips

-

"Hey hey hey, woah, no way" Tony said, taking the glass out of Peter's hand. "You're just a baby!" 

"Aww, but  _dad_!" 

"Oh Tony, it's just a bit of mulled wine" Loki said, trying to take the glass from him. 

Tony held it out of his reach. "Exactly! Wine!" 

" _Hot_  wine. It burns the alcohol out when-" 

"That's a common misconception and we both know it" Tony interrupted. 

"Mm, you've got me there" Loki shook his head. "Tony, give it back to him: you're making him sad" 

Peter pouted up at Tony to heighten the effect. "Please?" 

"Stop with the puppy dog eyes!" he looked at Peter a moment longer and sighed irritably. "Alright, fine! But just this once, ok?" 

"Ok!" 

"Ok, Loki?" 

Loki nodded, and Tony handed the glass back. Peter took it eagerly and took a big gulp - and his face screwed up in disgust. Tony burst out laughing. 

"Oh my god, your face!" 

Peter stuck his tongue out at him. "I'm gonna drink it no matter how much you laugh at me" 

Tony just laughed more and ruffled his hair. "Whatever, kiddo. Oh god, you've made a right tit of yourself for making such a fuss over it" 

Loki was as unimpressed as Peter. He shoved another glass of mulled wine at Tony. 

"Drink this and shut up"

-

- 

- 

Peter slammed his back against his bedroom door. 

"No, go away!" 

"Peter, what are you doing? You're not doing anything dodgy, are you?" 

"No!" Peter snarled indignantly. "Just go away" 

"Peter, you know damn well your other dad will break this door down with his bare hands if I ask him to. Now let me in" 

"No, I'm busy! It’s private!" 

"That's what I was afraid of! What are you doing?" 

"It's none of your business, now leave me  _alone_!"

“Peter, you have until the count of three to open this door before I break it down” 

“No! I’m sorting Christmas presents!”

Tony stopped. “Oh! Why didn’t you say?? Ok sweetheart, I’ll leave you alone. But we need to be heading out soon, so don’t be too long, ok?”

“Do I have to go?”

“Yes. We’ve been through this. Sort yourself out”

-

-

-

Loki elbowed Peter in the side.

“Stop frowning like that” he hissed. “You look so cross”

“I  _am_ cross” Peter hissed back. “I don’t like these people”

“Neither do I”

“How do you act so civil with them then?”

“Practice. Now sort your face out. Your father won’t be happy if you get a bad rep for giving people evils all night”

Peter sighed heavily. “Can we go home soon?”

“We;ve only been here half an hour”

“What are you two whispering about?” Tony asked, grabbing Peter by the hand. “Come on, Peter; I want to introduce you to a few people. Some of them might be useful to you one day, when you’re working alongside me”

Peter frowned slightly, but nodded. “Ok”

He supposed he didn’t really have any reason to object.

-

“Ah, so this is the son I’ve heard so much about!” 

“Yeah, this is my Peter” Tony said, ruffling the boys hair. “Good to see you again, Adam”

“Long time no see” Adam grinned, holding a hand out to Peter. “Good to finally meet you”

Peter reluctantly took the offered hand. He couldn’t help but wrinkle his nose at the horrible limp handshake he was greeted with. 

“So, are you excited?”

“About what?” It came out ruder than he intended, and Tony gave him a nudge.

Adam just laughed. “Well, it is nearly Christmas. Have you written your letter to Santa?”

Peter glared daggers at him. Adam and Tony both laughed, and Adam, much to Peter’s dismay, ruffled the boys hair. 

“What do you think, Stark? Naughty list or Nice list?”

“Oh, definitely the Naughty list, wouldn’t you agree, kiddo?” Tony grinned and looked at Peter. He saw the expression on the boys face. “Hey, why don’t you go and find your dad and let us grown-ups talk?”

Peter gave him a quick, grateful hug, and made his escape.

-

Loki was found leaning against the bar with Pepper, both of them making bitchy comments under their breath. They both looked up when Peter appeared.

“Hey, you” Loki said, lifting the boy onto a bar stool between them. 

“You’ve managed to escape from Adam then” Pepper said, raising an eyebrow at Loki. 

“He treated me like I was a little kid” Peter said bitterly. 

“You are a little kid” Loki and Pepper said. 

Peter rolled his eyes. “I knew this was a bad idea”

“Wait until you’re grown-up, kid” Pepper said. “They’ll get a whole lot worse. You’ve got it easy”

“And this is by no means the worst one we’ve ever suffered through” Loki said. “It’s alright for Tony: he can use it for networking, and he’s the kind of bloke that can just talk to anyone with no trouble, even the most insufferable bastards. And there’s plenty of those here”

“Isn’t there just?” Pepper said, clinking her glass against Loki’s.

“I hate them. Do you know how many people have asked me if I’m sure he’s not my biological dad? They’re worse than the papers” 

“Better get used to it” Pepper said.

Peter whined and buried his head in Loki’s chest. “I wanna go home”

“You’ll just have to wait” Loki said, turning and signalling to get the bartenders attention. “Settle down and drink as much mulled wine as possible. These things are more bearable when you’re drunk”

“Tony won’t be happy about you encouraging underage drinking” Pepper said.

“I can’t be held accountable for anything I do drunk” Loki said, winking at the barman who’d just set three more drinks down on the bar for them.

Pepper took one G&T, handed the other to Loki, and pressed the mulled wine into Peter’s hand. 

“Try to at least  _act_ sober”

Peter nodded, taking a sip of the hot wine. He still wasn’t really a fan of it. 

“Oh” Loki gestured towards a passing man. “Found one”

Pepper sighed. “Looks like you’re winning again”

Peter looked between them, watching as they clinked glasses, raised their drinks to their lips, and drained them.

-

Peter was fed up. He’d had to meet so many people, and hear the same few phrases and answer the same few questions over and over again. He’d taken Loki’s advice and kept on the mulled wine. He was starting to get used to the taste and  _almost_  liked it. Still, he wasn’t enjoying himself. He tried hard to stay with Loki and Pepper, even though they weren’t really in the right mood to entertain him. They were caught up in their own little games and conversations, and, while they didn’t mind him being there, they were more interested in their idle gossip than they were in Peter’s discomfort. 

Eventually, he slid off the bar stool and went to find Tony. He found him laughing and joking with a blonde lady, who was sitting far too close to him for Peter’s liking. Peter went into defensive child mode and immediately interrupted. 

“Dad!” he cried, bounding up and throwing his arms about the mans neck. 

“Woah! Hey, kiddo” Tony grinned, pulling the boy onto his lap. “How are you doing? Having fun?”

“I’m tired” Peter said, pouting and rubbing his eyes to help the effect. “I wanna go home”

“Later. Hey, have you met Kerry?” he nodded at the lady beside him. “Kerry, kid. Kid, Kerry”

Kerry gave him a big lipsticky smile. “This must be the son I’ve heard so much about”

“The very one” Tony said proudly, giving Peter a squeeze. “He’s usually more chatty than this”

“Little kids need their sleep” Kerry said. “Is he overtired, do you think?”

Peter scowled, holding tighter to his father. He didn’t like the way Kerry was smiling at Tony, and he didn’t like the way Tony was looking at her. 

“Dad, I wanna go  _home_ ” 

Tony sighed, but his skinful had put him in a good mood. “Alright kiddo, alright. What time is it?”

Peter shrugged.

“It’s nearly 1am” Kerry supplied, checking her watch. 

Tony gave her a kiss on the cheek and gave Peter a little tap to get him to stand up so he could too. He straightened his jacket and took Peter’s hand.

“It was good to see you again, Kez. I’ll see you around” he gave Peter’s hand a squeeze. “Lets go find daddy”

-

Loki was still laughing at the bar with Pepper. 

“Hey baby” Tony said, giving him a kiss. “The kid’s tired. We should make a move”

“Aw’ight, aw’ight, just lemme finish this”

“God, Loki, how much have you had?”

“Oh, leave him alone, Tony” Pepper cut in. “At least he hasn’t been flirting with Kerry from accounts all night”

“Ha ha, very funny” Tony said, and he gave Pepper a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. “I know you love me really”

“I think you’ve had too much to drink as well!” she smiled. “I hope you’ve got a driver on hand”

“Sure do! Gotta be a responsible adult sometimes” he grinned. 

Peter climbed up onto the stool between Pepper and Loki, and buried his face in Loki’s chest.

“Good evening, Peter Rabbit” Loki mumbled. “What’s th’ matter?”

“I’m bored and I wanna go home”

“Aww” Loki drained his glass, put it down, and hugged Peter tight. “Poor li’le bunny”

He rested his cheek against Peter’s head and looked over at Tony and Pepper, who were talking and giggling together. Tony soon noticed him looking and gave Pepper a last squeeze.

“We’d better be heading off. I think the kid’s half asleep”

Pepper gave Loki a hug and squeezed Peter’s shoulder. 

“We’ll catch up again soon” she promised.

“Yeah yeah, I’ll see you. Good luck tomorrow”

“Thanks sweet”

Tony pulled Peter away from Loki and put an arm round his shoulders.

“Alright then you two, let’s go. Better to sneak off now” Tony grinned. “See you later, Pep. Merry Christmas”

-

Once they’d been dropped off at home, Loki and Tony sent Peter to get ready for bed while they tried to determine who should get him settled.

“I’m drunker” Loki said. 

“Are you sure? How much did you have?”

“I lost count”

“So did I”

Tony frowned. “How do we settle this?”

“Arm wrestle”

“No way - you always win!” Tony held out a fist. “Best of three”

Loki agreed. 

Rock Paper Scissors.

Rock Paper Scissors.

Rock Paper Scissors.

“Fuck” Tony sighed heavily. “Fine, fine, I’ll do it”

Loki grinned and kissed him. “I’ll meet you in your bed”

-

Tony sat down on the edge of Peter’s bed.

“I hate your work parties”

“So do I” Tony said. “But you’d better get used to it. You’ll have way more when you’re older”

“I don’t know” Peter shrugged. “Maybe I won’t”

“You’ll take over from me one day. Even if you don’t end up as famous, you’ll still have a job just as important. Unfortunately rubbish meetings and dreadful parties are part of the job description”

Peter frowned. “Maybe I don’t want to... So anyway, about Kerry...”

“From accounts” Tony nodded, deciding to ignore his first comment. “She’s no one, not really. A friendly acquaintance. Don’t give me that look! She’s married, and more to the point, so am I”

“Everyone I met tonight treated me like a little kid”

“You are a little kid”

“You’re not helping”

Tony sighed. “You worry too much. Come on; it’s late. Lay down. Go to sleep”

Peter turned the nightlight on and did as he was told. “Am I still allowed to go to the market with the bunnies this weekend?”

“Sure. Same rules as always, though. Same curfew” 

Peter nodded. “I know... Goodnight dad”

“Goodnight son”

-

-

-

Peter wriggled away from Loki.

“I’m not going to Antarctica, you know”

“No, but it’s freezing out there. You’ll catch your death”

“I’ll be  _fine_ ” Peter insisted. “Stop fussing; I’m not a baby”

Loki sighed and squeezed his shoulder. “You be good, ok?”

“Dad! Stop” Peter whined, tugging his scarf off and undoing his coat. “You’re gonna make me late! I’m off. See you later”

-

Peter smiled apologetically when he met up with Millie, Macy, and Flo.

“Nice of you to join us” Macy grinned.

Peter whipped out his whiteboard.

_Sorry. Dad held me up_

“Aw, he just worries” Millie said.

“Both your dads do” Flo said. “I’m glad you could make it. Shall we?”

Peter nodded. 

_What time do you lot have to be home by?_

“I’ve got to be back at the boarding house by five” Macy said, pulling a face.

“Flo’s coming back to mine. Father said he’d pick us up after work, so around seven o’ clock” 

Peter nodded. That gave them plenty of time.

-

They had a great time looking round the market together. Peter didn’t have much of an appetite, but he had cup after polystyrene cup of hot chocolate as they walked round. 

“I’m so glad we’ve finished school for the holidays now” Flo said, linking arms with Peter. “We’ll have to keep meeting up, won’t we?”

“Don’t plan anything too big!” Macy said. “I hate missing out”

Flo giggled, but Peter nodded understandingly. Macy was going home tomorrow, spending the Christmas holidays with her family in Canada. As such, they wouldn’t see her until term began in the New Year. 

“We’ll stay in touch” Millie said easily. 

“You’d better! Lettie said she was going to send a present on for me”

Millie nodded. “She will, she will! We wanted to give it to you before you went, but it hasn’t arrived yet. Online orders can be such a pain in the neck sometimes”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. I can’t open anything until Christmas day anyway. Mother would be furious if I opened anything before and she found out”

Flo giggled again and shook her head. “I’ve never understood that. I’m happy to open friends presents straight away - and I want them to open theirs too, so I can see what they think!”

“Oh yes, I understand that” Millie said. “But I have a little tree in my room, and it’s nice to put all the little presents my friends give me underneath to add to the decor. It’s exciting having the little build up. But I do sometimes end up opening them on Christmas Eve. Mother doesn’t mind, and father doesn’t know”

“ _My_ parents would be  _so_ angry if did that! Mother won’t let me so much as  _touch_ any of my presents before the 25th” Macy wrinkled her nose. “What about you, Peter? What’s the rule at your place?”

Peter frowned slightly.

_Well, this will be the first Christmas without my aunt, so I don’t know_

“Oh Peter” Flo gave him a hug, and glared at Macy. “It slipped our minds”

Peter shook his head, saying it was ok. 

“... We spent Christmas with my dads the last few years. But we- me and May - we started at home, yknow, and then went over a bit later...” he swallowed. “I don’t really know what it’s gonna be like this year”

“You’ll get spoiled rotten” Millie said, very matter-o’-factly. 

“I don’t know about that...”

“Nonsense! Of  _course_ you will. Your dads are crazy about you” she said enviously. “Besides, they both love this time of year, so no doubt you’ll get loads of treats in between now and the big day too!”

Peter smiled. “They’ll treat you too when you come round”

“You’ll make me jealous!” Macy said, but she was just joking - mostly.

“You’ll make  _me_ excited” Flo said. “I haven’t seen your decorations yet! I can’t wait to see what Christmas at the Stark’s is like!”

-

Loki frowned at the clock.

“Tony?”

Tony raised his head but didn’t look up from his laptop. “Hm?”

“What time did you tell Peter to be back by?”

“Half four, why?”

“Check the time”

Tony did. “Well, he’ll be in trouble when he gets back”

-

Eight o’ clock.

Peter slipped into the house silently - or so he thought. Loki appeared and he bumped into him at the top of the stairs, arms crossed over his chest. Peter froze, took a deep breath, and gave him a cheeky grin. Loki raised an eyebrow, unimpressed, and Peter’s smile faltered. Tony appeared at his side.

“What time do you call this?”

“Uuuhh...”

“You should have been back three and a half hours ago” Tony said. “I want an explanation. Now”

Peter swallowed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I- um... I lost track of time”

Tony sighed heavily. “That’s not good enough! You don’t ‘lose track of time’ for three and a half hours!”

“But-!”

“But nothing. Go to your room”

“But-!”

“Peter, that wasn’t a suggestion”

Peter stopped, gave up, scowled, and stalked off to his room.

-

After the day he’d had, Peter couldn’t get too upset about his parents. He settled down in his room and went through everything he’d bought that day, and everything he’d been given. Macy had given Peter his main Christmas present that day. Millie and Flo were waiting, as they’d both be seeing him closer to the day. Peter had given Macy her presents too, which he hoped would go down well, but he wouldn’t find out until after Christmas.

Peter looked at what Macy had given him: a book on mechanical engineering, a Steiff penguin, and a pair of fleece-lined Dr Marten shoes. It was good stuff, but it was another one of those moments where he realised he still hadn’t gotten used to being rich, and going to a rich-kids school.

He put the book on the shelf and the shoes on his shoe rack. He dithered over the penguin, knowing that while it was  _technically_ a toy, it was also much more an ornament. He eventually set it down on the cabinet next to where his giant Stieff elephant stood. It would be safe there. 

With his own presents away, Peter had space and time to get the wrapping paper out again. He’d managed to find a few bits and bobs for friends and family, including a snow globe for Loki. It was a pretty impressive one, big, with a carousel in it, which rotated and played music when the key on the bottom was turned. He was sure it would be a success.

-

Peter was just putting the scissors away and shoving wrapped presents into a box when there was a knock and his bedroom door opened. He looked up.

“Hi...”

“Get up, kid” Tony said. “I think we need to have a chat”

“Why? Yeah, I was late home. So what? Loads of kids stay out way later than that”

“Don’t get smart with me. You’ve been a royal nuisance recently, you know”

Peter rolled his eyes and flopped down onto the bed. 

“Oi! Stop it with the attitude”

“Stop having a go at me then! You’re always jumping down my throat!”

“Do you want to discuss this civilly or not?”

Peter picked up a book, making his answer perfectly obvious.

“Fine. You’re on your last warning, young man. One more slip-up, and there’ll be trouble”

Peter pretended to be reading until Tony had left and shut the door behind him. He put the book down and grumbled to himself. Both parents had been remarkably strict with him lately. He wondered how they’d react if he did something that was actually bad, like swore at a teacher or stole from his wallet. As far as he could see, he hadn’t actually done anything  _wrong_ lately. Ok, so he’d forgotten about the curfew tonight, but it wasn’t like he’d been deliberately disobedient - and even if he had, coming home late wasn’t really such a bad thing. He wondered why he’d bothered getting them anything for Christmas when they were always so snippy with him. He’d got to ‘last warning’ stage for no good reason, and he was fed up. Maybe he’d be better off acting up on purpose just to give them a good reason to shout at him.

-

-

-

Loki grabbed hold of Peter by the arm. 

“We told you to be back here by five. You can’t pull the ‘I forgot’ card. You did this on purpose”

“So what?! It’s not like anyone  _died_!” Peter snapped, pushing at Loki’s hand. “You’re hurting! Let go of me!”

“Don’t you  _dare_ start with the crocodile tears, or I’ll give you something to really cry about” 

“You’re overreacting! What’s the big deal?!”

“Anything could have happened to you” Tony interrupted. “You go out, you come back five -  _five -_ hours after you should have done, and you don’t answer your phone. Do you have any idea how worried we were? What have you been doing all day?”

“What does it matter? It’s not like I’ve been breaking the law or anything” Peter scowled, trying to wrench Loki’s hand off his arm. “Oww”

“You’ve been pushing your luck, and it’s just run out” Tony said. “You’re in huge trouble. I don’t even know where to start”

“I haven’t done anything wrong! Leave me alone!” he whimpered, giving up on trying to escape. “I hate both of you!”

Loki smacked him hard, making him squeak. 

“You need to sort out your attitude”

“I’ve had just about enough of this” Tony snapped. “Peter, stop crying and trying to get the sympathy vote. You’re grounded for the foreseeable future, do you understand me?!”

Peter stared at him. “B-b-but-!”

“B-b-but, but nothing! Now get to your room”

“But I’m supposed to be seeing Flo-”

“Well you should have thought about that before you disobeyed us like that. Now get to your room. It’s late”

Peter cried, and when Loki let go of him, he stormed off to his room.

-

Tony went to check on him the next morning.

“Are you planning on getting up today?”

Peter just glared at him and didn’t move. Tony sighed and sat down on the bed.

“You’ve had your warnings. What’s gotten into you lately?”

“What’s gotten into  _me_? What’s gotten into  _you_? Both of you have been horrible to me. I’m fed up of being shouted at all the time when I haven’t done anything wrong!”

“Don’t shout at me”

“I’m not shouting!”

“You are. Look, you’re in trouble for good reason. You know that. Your behaving like a petulant little kid. We’re too old and too busy to humour your idiocy”

Peter turned onto his other side so he didn’t have to look at him. 

“You’ve been a complete nightmare recently. Stop acting like this! You’re doing my head in”

“Go away then!” He meant to shout, but his voice cracked.

Tony grabbed him under the arms and hauled him upright. 

“We’re going to sort this out” he said firmly, keeping hold of Peter so he couldn’t escape. “You’ve been acting up for weeks now, at school as well as home. You’ve been driving us mad. I’ve got a lot on at the moment, what with Christmas coming up and all that. Your other dad is snowed under too, and you’re really not helping. You’re stressing him out”

Peter turned his head away.

“You might well be ashamed” Tony said, noting the tears dripping down the boys cheeks. “... Is it because it’s nearly January?”

Peter’s head jerked. They looked at each other for a moment, and a horrible hot feeling welled in Peter’s stomach and he looked away again.

“... I miss her”

“Oh kid. Oh sweetheart” Tony melted and pulled him close, holding on tight even though he wriggled. “I’ve been so busy I never even stopped to think. I should’ve known... I’m sorry”

Peter stopped trying to escape and finally hugged him back. 

“I miss her too, son. I really do”

-

-

-

Peter stood back, biting his thumb.

“Would it be blasphemous to take a photo of it?”

“I don’t think so” Loki said. 

Peter looked at the grave with its proud black and gold headstone. He’d suddenly had the urge to decorate it. May had always loved Christmas decorations. He knew that out in the open the options were limited, and it wasn’t as though it was really important - but it mattered to him. Tony wasn’t so sure, but he didn’t say, just passed responsibility over to Loki. Loki was very good, helping Peter make decisions and put it all together. The final result was simple - gold tinsel, a small Christmas tree with some commissioned decorations, a slate Christmas memorial plaque - but effective. Something about it worked. It felt right.

“It looks good” Tony said gently. “She- she’d love it”

“Remember that tree you got us? The one with the train that went round it on a track? It was her favourite Christmas thing”

“She always did it very tastefully” Tony said, remembering the flat at Christmas.

He sighed sadly, and Loki gave his hand an understanding squeeze.

“I know. I know” 

Tony squeezed his hand hard and pulled away to put an arm round Peter’s shoulders. 

“Hey” he said. “Do you want a few minutes to yourself?”

Peter nodded.

“Ok sweetheart. We’ll go and wait in the car. Join us when you’re ready”

-

-

-

Peter crawled onto Loki’s lap.

“Hello sweetie” Loki said distractedly, adjusting his laptop on the breakfast bar. 

“I’m bored. Can I go out?”

“You’re still grounded” Loki said, tapping away at the keyboard with one hand.

Peter whined quietly. “Bored”

“So you said”

“Please let me go out? Dad doesn’t have to know”

“He’d find out. Now don’t push your luck. He’s been very lenient with you, still agreeing on the bunnies coming over on Friday”

“I know. I’m still bored though”

“Homework?”

“They didn’t set any over the holidays”

“I see. Swimming?”

Peter shook his head. “It’s boring on my own, and I’m fed up of swim-team-type practice”

“Telly?”

“There’s nothing good on”

“Watch a film then”

“Don’t want to”

Loki sighed. “I don’t know what else to suggest, then”

Peter sighed in an exaggerated fashion and slid off Loki’s lap.

“Peter?” Loki said as the boy reached the kitchen door. “Stay away from the nativity”

-

"Don’t let you father catch you at that”

Peter jumped violently, very nearly dropping the Willow Tree lamb he was holding. 

“You made me jump!”

“So I see” Tony chuckled, kneeling down beside him and picking up the goat. “What’s your fascination with these things, anyway? Look at you, playing games like a little kid with toys”

Peter looked at him, confirmed he wasn’t being mocked, and shrugged. 

“I just like them. And I’ve been bored a lot recently, so..” he said, making the lamb walk over to the goat. “It’s not so bad acting like a little kid, is it?”

“You are a little kid” Tony said. "If you wanna play little pretend games and make lego houses and drive a remote control car round the house, that’s fine with me. Just don’t go writing on the walls. And maybe” he put the goat down, took the lamb from Peter, and put it back in its place. “Maybe keep away from the statues. Your father’ll ‘ave you if he catches you”

Peter sighed. “I’ve not really got anything to play with though”

“What about your elephant?”

Peter raised an eyebrow at him. “Dad, my elephant is like three foot tall. And besides, Steiff toys aren’t  _proper_ toys. Have you seen how much those things cost? I looked online and found my elephant for £950, so that’s like, I don’t know, nearly twelve hundred dollars? That’s  _insane_. I can’t understand how daddy Loki was happy to spend that amount of money. In fact, I don’t understand how  _anyone_ could spend that amount of money on a so-called toy”

“What’s the matter? I thought you liked your elephant”

“I-I do. I love it, and like, I’m grateful, yknow, for my elephant, for everything. But I’m still not used to this whole How The Other Half Live thing”

“You are the other half”

“Exactly. And it’s  _weird_. I mean, I’ve got  _socks_ now that cost more than some full outfits I had this time last year. Everything changed and everything that didn’t get horrible got weird and I just, I just don’t always  _get_ this. I’ve always known you were rich, obviously, and you treated me loads and loads, but then, well, it was different, because, like, one minute you were family friends and then the next minute you were all I had and then, and then the  _next_ you were my actual actual family and then, and then-”

“Hey, hey hey hey, breathe, sweetheart” 

Peter collapsed against him, breathing deeply. “I’m still getting used to all this”

“Hey, hey, I know, I know. It’s all been a bit of a culture shock for you, I know that. But hey, at least you’ll never have to worry about where your next meal is coming from or anything like that. There’s worse places to end up, kiddo”

Peter sighed heavily. “I know. I’m real lucky. It’s just been a really horrible year in a lot of ways”

“Yeah, you’ve had a tough time” Tony said, giving him a squeeze. “You’ve had some good stuff happen too, though. Your friends, for one, and how well you’re doing at school. Joining the swim team. Being adopted... Our little Euro-tour. I know it’s been tough, but you’ve had ups as well as downs”

“I don’t want you to think I’m being ungrateful”

“I don’t. We don’t. It’s been tough on all of us” 

“... I am bored, yknow. Since I’m grounded”

Tony laughed. “You can’t guilt trip your way out of that one, kiddo. I’m sure you can find a way to entertain yourself”

“Hadn’t we just established that I haven’t got anything to play with?” Peter said, moving back. 

“Well, you’ll just have to wait and see what Father Christmas brings” Tony said, ruffling his hair and standing up. “I’m going down to the lab. Wanna join me?”

Peter took his hand and let himself be helped up. He supposed it was something to do.

-

-

-

Tony tapped Loki on the shoulder.

“Hey, can I have a word?”

Loki put the kettle down and turned to him. “Is everything ok?”

“I wanted to ask you something. It’s about... Christmas”

“Oh?”

“I was just wondering... I don’t suppose you could do me a favour, could you?”

Loki raised an eyebrow. “What kind of favour?”

“Could you go teetotal for Christmas day?”

Loki paused, thinking about the Bucks Fizz in the fridge and the tradition of mulled apple cider on Christmas mornings.

“Why?”

“Well. I was just thinking... I think Peter’s gonna need a lot of reassurance and comforting this year. I don’t think getting drunk is going to help the situation. I want you on a level playing field. He’s your son just as much as mine. I want you to help look after him”

“Oh Tony, my having a Christmas tipple isn’t going to make that much difference” Loki sighed, going over to the fridge to get the milk out. “I’m hardly going to spend the day getting bladdered”

“You did last year”

Loki stopped. It was true. Him and May had gone a bit overboard. They’d had a great time, and the only real effect was an unplanned sleepover at the Stark’s. Tony had never said anything about it until now. 

“That was different”

“Loki, promise me”

“No”

“Loki! It’d be good for you. It’s just one day”

“That’s not the point. I don’t see why I can’t still have a drink like I always do. I won’t get drunk, I’ll promise you that much” Tony didn’t look happy. Loki scowled at him. “Marriage is about compromise, isn’t it?”

Tony growled and smacked him with a nearby magazine. “You’re being facetious. I’m not asking for myself - I’m asking for Peter’s sake”

Loki rolled his eyes and put the milk back. “A glass of fizz and a mug of mulled cider aren’t going to make me an unfit parent”

“I know that, but-”

“Shut up, Tony. I’m not going to get drunk. I’m promising no more than that” he said, raising his mug to his lips. “Peter won’t mind”

“I will”

Loki looked at him. “What’s gotten into you?”

“I’m  _trying_  to act like a responsible parent, not that you’re helping”

“What’s that supposed to mean? We both look after him. We both keep the house. We both go out to work-”

“You volunteer; there’s a difference”

“Oh right, I see, so that makes it worthless, does it?”

“I didn’t say that”

“You meant it though. You’re being ridiculous. Ok, so you think I’m not being a proper parent because I like a drink? Well, some people might say that giving a fifteen year old access to welding tools is irresponsible parenting, so that makes both of us rubbish”

Tony wanted to argue, but he knew he was probably right - infuriatingly so. They stared each other out for a moment, both of them knowing that Loki had shoved Tony down to second place. Tony cracked first, turning his head away. 

“I’d better make sure Peter’s tidied up. The girls will be here soon”

-

-

-

16th of December. 

The girls were supposed to be round again, but Millie’s family had decided at the last minute to spend Christmas with Lettie’s mother and family, and they’d left already. Peter wasn’t very happy generally, and this didn’t help. He was ready to spend the day moping - he hadn’t expected company.

Flo cuddled up to Peter on the windowsill. “You’ve been so sad recently. Do you want to talk about it?”

Peter shook his head and shifted away from her. 

“Is it because Millie and Macy are away? Or because you miss your aunt?”

Peter didn’t respond. Flo gave his hand a squeeze.

“I’ll give you some space”

-

Loki was a little surprised to find Flo in the kitchen. 

“Has little Peter sent you on an errand, Flopsy Bunny?” 

Flo looked at her. “Mr Stark, has something happened recently? Peter seems so upset”

“I think he’s just generally feeling a bit down” Loki said. “I wouldn’t take it personally. Has he said anything to you?”

“No, not a word. That’s the problem. He wouldn’t even pick up his board” Flo sighed. “I hate to see him so sad”

“I thought he’d cheer up when he saw you” Loki said. “You know don’t have to stay if you don’t want to: I can get Tony to drive you home”

“Oh no, I couldn’t leave. He might want to talk later. I’d like to be here if he decides he does” 

“That’s very sweet of you, but I fear you’ll bore yourself, sticking around here”

“Do you need any help with anything?”

“Don’t you worry about any of that. Why don’t you just go and stick the telly on or something? Shout if you need anything: I’ll be around”

Flo nodded. “Peter might talk to you”

“I wouldn’t bet on it. Go. Help yourself to anything in the kitchen, but stay away from the chocolates on the Christmas trees”

-

Peter had fallen asleep for a while, and he felt a lot better when he woke up, although still a bit funny. He went to track down Flo, and found her curled up on the sofa with the telly on, looking very small and pretty in her little winter dress and cardigan. He sat down beside her and put his arms round her shoulders.

“I’m sorry”

Flo hugged him back. “It’s ok. We all have those days”

“What are you watching?”

“Do you know, I don’t really know. I haven’t really been paying attention: I only really put the telly on because your father told me to and I didn’t really want to disobey him. You know I hate to disappoint people”

“You worry too much. My parents think you’re great” 

Flo smiled. “I hope so. They’ve always made me - and the others - feel so welcome here. You’re so lucky. They really love you. Millie’s very jealous, even though she doesn’t say so”

“You’re not going away for Christmas, are you?”

“You know I’m not. We never do. It’s always nicer staying home. There’s no reason to go away, especially not after all the effort mother puts into her Christmas decorations! Although, don’t tell her I said so, but I think I prefer your main tree. Christmas at the Stark’s! It’s so beautiful. Your parents really do love the Christmas season”

Peter looked round the room at all the decorations. Not just the tree and lights, but at the little candles and statues and souvenirs and everything else. 

“Are you looking forward to Christmas?”

“I’m not sure... I keep thinking about May” Peter sighed. “I  _was_ excited, like, when we were all meeting up and doing the markets and everything. But of course I’m grounded now, and it’s easy to overthink when you’re stuck inside on your own all the time”

“I understand” Flo nodded. “You must be feeling awful mixed up. I’m sure you’ll have a good time though. Your dads will both spoil you, won’t they?”

“Maybe... I haven’t even asked them for anything, and it’s getting a bit late in the day to start asking for stuff now. The thing is, I’ve had too much to worry about, and I just haven’t had time to sit down and think about what I might want for Christmas”

“That just means you’ll get more surprises” Flo said, positive as ever. “Did Millie give you your presents before she left?”

“Yes, we met up a few days ago, but we didn’t have very long together; only about an hour”

“Oh good, I’m glad you did! Oh Peter, I think this might be the last time we see each other before Christmas, so I have your presents with me, if you’d like to open them now”

“Oh! Uh, why don’t you come to my room? I’ve got your presents in there”

-

Flo gave Peter a big hug.

“Oh Peter, you’re simply lovely! I couldn’t ask for a better friend - and I’m not just saying that because of the Christmas presents!”

Peter hugged her back. “I’m so glad you liked everything. I was worried you wouldn’t”

“I’d love anything you gave me, but  _this_  - oh, I just love everything” she grinned, her cheeks pink. “Can I put this on now?”

Peter giggled. “If you’d like to”

“I would!” Flo struggled to her feet. “Can you undo my dress for me?”

Flo held her long blonde hair out of the way, and Peter undid the zip at the back for her. She let her old dress fall to the floor and then slipped the new dress on. Again, Peter helped her with the zip on the back. Flo gave a twirl, touching the fabric lovingly. It was a wonderful powder blue skater dress, with flared skirts and a little white belt round the waist.

“It fits perfectly. And it has pockets!” she laughed, shoving her hands in them. “I love it!”

“You look wonderful” Peter grinned, wrapping the fluffy white blanket with the gold detailing (another present) round her shoulders. “I think it might be a little bit cold for sleeveless dresses today”

“Oh, it’s warm as toast in here” Flo smiled, but holding onto the edges of the blanket nevertheless. “Ooh, that lovely pearl bracelet will fit perfectly with this outfit!”

She picked up the lovely bracelet and wound it round her wrist, admiring the little gold ‘F’ charm. 

“Oh Peter, this is just wonderful. I never want to take it off!” she grinned. “You’ll have to open your presents now!”

She grabbed the big gift bag and sat crossed-legged on the bed. Peter sat down opposite her. He felt a little bit nervous, although he wasn’t sure why. His hands shook a bit as he took the carefully wrapped parcels from the bag and lined them up. 

“Those ones in the different paper are for your parents. I hope that’s not weird”

“You didn’t have to get them anything! Or me, for that matter” Peter said, moving those ones aside. “They’ll be flattered, you know”

Flo just smiled, looking back at Peter’s presents on the bed between them.

“Do you want me to open them in a certain order?”

“Oh no; they’re not really connected. You can open them however you like”

So Peter did. The first was a huge jar of flying saucers, his favourites. 

“I know your parents buy them online for you a lot, but I was so excited to actually see them that I decided I just had to get them for you!”

Next was a $30 gift card for a nearby bookshop.

“You spend so much time at the library, I thought it would be nice for you to get some books you can keep for a change”

The last present, the biggest, was technically two - it was a lovely cuddly toy kangaroo with a joey in its pouch. This was a proper toy toy, Peter thought, unlike Steiff cuddlies. 

“Aww, sweetheart! Oh, I love them! You’ve all got me cuddly toys. I’ve got quite a collection!”

“You really like them? I was a little worried, because I know Macy and Millie got you Steiff toys, and they’re much nicer, but I thought maybe you’d like something you can actually use as a toy? Something soft”

“You were right” Peter grinned. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love the Steiff stuff, but they’re much more ornaments than they are toys. As you can see”

He looked over at the cabinet next to where his elephant stood. His new Steiff penguin and teddy bear sat pride of place on top. 

“I did order you something else, but there was a delay and it won’t arrive until after Christmas”

Peter shook his head. “It’s fine. Aww, you’ve all got me such lovely stuff. I feel so spoilt!”

“You look like you’re going to cry!”

“Maybe I am” 

Peter hugged her tight. 

“Oh, I do have one more thing for you”

Peter pulled back, looking at her quizzically. She smiled softly, leant forward, and kissed him gently on the lips.

-

-

-

Loki looked at Peter like he was a fool.

“What do you mean, you’ve never seen The Snowman? You’ve lived on this planet for longer than I have”

“Well, I  _might_ have seen it, but I don’t know if I remember any of it”

“Loki, stop looking at him like that! Don’t worry about him, kiddo. You’ll recognise it as soon as you see it” Tony said, shoving a mug of warm frothy milk into his hand. “Go on, get settled. That goes for you, too, Loki”

Loki took his own mug of chai and went through to the living room to get the film sorted.

Tony joined them shortly, and plonked down next to them on the sofa. 

“Right, let’s watch this”

“I  _do_ recognise this! I think I  _have_ seen it before, but I can only really remember the flying scene”

“Well, we watch it every year. Shh now. Quiet time”

-

Peter felt relaxed enough to go to sleep, but he stayed awake anyway, curled up between his dads. They watched The Snowman, and then put on The Snowman and The Snowdog.

“I don’t think I’ve even  _heard_ of this one”

“I’ve not seen it either” Loki said. 

“I have” Tony said.

They were quiet for a few minutes.

“Oh no”

“What?”

“The kid looks like Peter” Loki said. “I might cry”

Tony laughed at him, but he gave his hand a squeeze. “Me too”

Peter rolled his eyes.

When the film finished, they were all quiet for a moment.

“Dad?”

“Hm?”

“I want a dog”

Tony laughed. “Oh sweetheart”

“Please?”

“We’ll see” Tony said, which was just another way of saying no.

-

-

-

Loki grabbed Peter by the collar and pulled him up from the floor.

“Leave that bloody nativity alone!”

“Sorry” Peter said, looking up at him, shame-faced.

Loki sighed and set him on his feet. “Go and get ready to go out”

“Out?” Peter said, rubbing his neck. “But I’m grounded”

“You’re coming out with me and your dad. Now go on, get yourself bundled up and get your shoes on” 

-

Peter went to the kitchen and Tony immediately decided that a thin jacket and scarf and little trainers weren’t suitable. With Loki’s help, he soon had the boy kitted out in a proper scarf, gloves, hat, and boots, with his duffel coat over the top.

“There. Much better”

“I’m going to boil to death”

Tony laughed. “Don’t be such a drama queen. Lets get going”

-

Peter collapsed against Loki once he’d gotten his boots back on. 

“I’m gonna be bruised for a month” he said breathlessly. “I thought ice skating would be easier than that”

“You thought wrong then” Loki said, standing up. “Here, I’ll return your skates”

Peter looked at Tony. “Tired”

“You’ll live. We’ll go and find something to eat, shall we? What do you fancy?”

Peter thought for a minute. “Something I don’t get very often”

“We’ll have a walk round and see what we can find”

-

“Hey, Tony” Loki said gently. “I think we need to call it a night”

“Hm? Why?”

Loki put an arm round Peter, steering him back onto the path. “I think he’s getting tired”

Peter looked up at him, bleary-eyed, and Tony knew what Loki meant.

“Let’s get home, then” he said. “I think we’re all ready for bed”

-

-

-

Peter checked to make sure Tony and Loki were still otherwise engaged, and then snuck off to the living room. The tree was starting to look very busy, with lots of presents piled up underneath it. He knelt down and very carefully started rifling through - and a sudden blaring siren and flashing red lights sounded, shocking him and making him gasp and jump. 

Loki appeared behind him and grabbed him round the chest, making him jump again, and lifted him off the floor. Peter looked back at him guiltily. 

“We’ve told you not to go snooping” 

Peter tried a smile, but Loki didn’t smile back, and his own smile dropped. Loki smacked him on the bottom and told him to behave himself.

-

-

-

Peter was hungry. Unfortunately, all the good-looking food in the kitchen was for Christmas, and he’d been told very firmly not to touch anything. He didn’t really know what to do. With a kitchen full of cool and exciting festive food, the thought of a peanut butter sandwich didn’t exactly entice him. He didn’t  _want_ proper food - he wanted sweets and chocolate and - oh, that gave him an idea.

He crept into the living room, which was mercifully empty. He looked at the Christmas tree, so lovingly and traditionally decorated - with many spare gaps filled with chocolate Santa’s and chocolate bells and chocolate baubles, all the way round. He could just take some from the back, he thought. That way it wouldn’t be so noticeable. He double checked that the coast was clear, and took a handful from the back of the tree. He wasted no time in shelling the foil and shoving the chocolate into his mouth. Damn, that was good chocolate. Now he’d had a taste, he wanted to eat and eat and eat. He finished his handful, and was just about to reach for another chocolate when he heard someone clearing their throat behind him. He gasped slightly and spun round. Peter grinned at him, but after seeing the stern look on Loki’s face, he let the smile fade.

“Who said you could have those?”

“Well, no one, but-”

“Peter”

Peter shut up. He knew he couldn’t talk his way out of this one. 

“You’re a naughty thing, you know that? You’ll land yourself firmly on the naughty list if you’re not careful”

Peter swallowed. Just as he had expected, he got given a smack and sent to his room. The way Loki and Tony spoke whenever he played up nowadays, he was starting to think Father Christmas might be real after all.

-

-

-

Tony took Peter’s empty mug from him.

“Better start getting ready for bed, chick”

“Aww, but it’s only seven o’ clock!”

“Maybe so, but you need an early night; you’ve been so tired recently. And besides, Father Christmas won’t come if you’re not asleep”

“Can’t we play a game or something? Just for an hour?”

Tony shook his head. “We’ve already played every board game in the house” 

“A different kind of game, then” Peter said. “Something more active” 

“Don’t you dare suggest a wrestle” Loki cut in. “Not with all these decorations around”

“I wasn’t thinking that!” Peter lied. 

Loki raised an eyebrow at him. Peter scowled.

“I’ll be back in a minute”

He returned a minute or two later with an armful of cuddly toys. Tony burst out laughing.

“Oh sweetheart, you’re such a cute little kid” 

Peter stuck his tongue out at him. 

“Alright, no need to be cheeky. It’s not too late for Father Christmas to move you onto the naughty list” 

Loki sighed and sat down on the rug before the fire. “Come on, then, little boy”

Peter sat down on the rug, and so did Tony. Peter put his new kangaroo and his old snowy seal toy on the rug between the three of them. 

“Well, I think this is easy enough” Loki said.

He took the baby kangaroo from its mothers pouch and handed it to Peter. He then gave the mother kangaroo to Tony, and kept the seal for himself. 

“I don’t get it” 

“How can you not get it? Have you been on the whiskey while I’ve had my back turned?” Loki shook his head. “Peter’s the baby because he’s  _our_ baby, you’re the big kangaroo because you look like him, and I’m the seal because it’s the odd one out and because of my heritage” 

“Oh, right. So, what shall we play?”

He looked at Peter to find that he was already playing about, making the baby kangaroo hop along the brickwork in front of the fireplace. 

“No no, you shouldn’t play so close to the fire!” Tony said, putting on a squeaky mother voice and making his kangaroo guide the baby away from the fire. 

“Aww, but muma, I wanna stay by the warm!”

-

They played quite a lengthy game, getting into character very quickly and all of them having quite a lot of fun. After a time, when Peter was collapsed in giggles from Loki’s very realistic seal impersonations, Tony gently pulled him close and gave his tummy a quick tickle.

“I think we need to start settling down, sweetie” he said gently. 

“Aww, do we have to?”

“I think we’d better” Loki said. “Now, daddy is going to fix us all a hot drink, while you and me settle on the sofa and find a quick little thing to watch. Ok?”

Peter nodded and let Loki pick him up. “Ok”

-

Tony fixed a couple of boozy hot chocolates for himself and Loki, and gave Peter a mug of warm milk and honey. Loki had done a good job getting Peter settled on the sofa, wrapped in a blanket.

“There we are, sweetheart” Tony said, settling down beside him. “Did we find something to watch?”

“Uh-huh”

“Ok, good. Lets watch this, and then it’s bedtime”

-

They watched the cartoon of How The Grinch Stole Christmas. Peter started feeling very sleepy indeed. It wasn’t especially late, but he felt ready to call it a night. He finished his drink and cuddled up between Tony and Loki, half watching the film, and half looking around. The room was wonderfully warm and festive. He looked at the fire crackling in the fireplace, the big glittering Christmas tree, all the little decorations and candles and candle holders and lights. He looked over at the big fairground model, with all its moving parts and lights, the big wheel and carousel spinning, the boat swinging, and the little figures spinning, as though ice skating. 

He felt so warm and comfortable and soft. He was cosy in his Christmas pyjamas, wrapped up in a blanket under Tony’s arm while Loki stroked his hair. Everything felt good. He was happy. He looked over at the mantelpiece. In the middle, amongst everything else, was a beautiful crystal angel ornament. It was too far away to see, but Peter knew the message carved into it:  _Remembering loved ones at Christmas_ , with  _Our May_ underneath. In his bedroom, Peter had a little wooden robin, which read;  _Robins appear when loved ones are near_. He intended to keep it there all year round.

-

Loki knocked on Peter’s door and pushed it open.

“Hello, sweetheart. Ready for bed?”

“Nearly” Peter said. “But I’ve just thought of something”

“And what would that be?” 

“I don’t have a stocking”

“Hm? Yes you do. Didn’t your father give it to you?”

Peter shook his head. 

Loki sighed and rolled his eyes. “That man is a menace. Wait here”

Peter followed him anyway. They found Tony in the kitchen.

“Hey, you two. You should be going to bed, kiddo”

Loki glanced at Peter, and then back at Tony. “Stocking”

“Hm? Oh! Oh right, I completely forgot!” Tony hit his forehead with his palm. “It’s in the back room. Come on, kiddo”

-

Peter looked at the stocking. It was obviously hand-made, and beautifully so. It was red felt, with big white stitching round the edges, and fluffy white fur at the top. Diagonally across the front, his name was written in green felt, and above it, again in felt, was a smiling gingerbread man wearing a little bow tie. 

He looked at it, tracing the stitching with his fingers and feeling the soft white fur. 

“What do you think?” Loki asked, sounding nervous. 

Peter looked up at him, a tear leaking from his eyelid, and he grinned at him. 

“I love it!”

“Really?”

“Yeah! It’s so cute and traditional and proper! No one else will ever have one like this!” 

He laughed and gave him a hug, and Tony. 

“Ok sweetheart, let’s get you to bed”

-

Peter carefully lay his stocking over the end of his bed and turned the nightlight on. 

“Have you done your teeth and stuff?” 

Peter nodded. “Yep, all done”

“Good. Let’s get you settled. You need to go straight to sleep, or-”

“Or Father Christmas won’t come” Peter finished for him. He grinned. “I’m all excited now!”

“Honestly, after all that time we spent getting you calmed down” Loki said, shaking his head - but he grinned too.

Peter let himself be tucked in. Tony tucked his Peter Rabbit toy under his arm, and his kangaroos and seal beside him, with their heads poking out from under the covers. 

“There. Sleep-time now, kiddo” Tony said, kissing him on the forehead. 

“Goodnight, chick” Loki said, kissing his nose and tickling him under the chin.

“Night dads"

Tony turned the main light off and waited in the doorway while Loki finished settling Peter down. 

“We can still go and visit May tomorrow, can’t we?”

“Of course we can, darling. We’ll go before lunch”

“She always loved coming round here for Christmas. She always said it was so she didn’t have to cook, but it was more than that”

“I know, darling. We always loved having her. And you... We can still have a good day”

Peter nodded. “I know. We will. I’m- I’m happy... And sleepy”

“I can tell” Loki kissed his cheek. "Time to go to sleep, sweetheart”

“Goodnight. See you in the morning...”

“Goodnight, sweetheart” Tony said. 

Loki gave Peter’s shoulder a quick squeeze and joined Tony. 

“No touching your stocking until morning”

-

Peter woke up around 1am. As always, the ethereal blue glow of the nightlight made everything feel a little unreal for a few moments. He lifted his head, and quickly noticed that his stocking, which had been at his feet when he’d gone to bed, was gone. He sat up quickly, and spotted it. It was no longer flat: it was full to bursting, propped up against the leg of the bed. Part of him wanted to empty it out and try to guess what everything was, but he was so sleepy... He smiled to himself, lay back down, and fell asleep.

*

*

*


End file.
